Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014

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Halloween is a time for brilliance and creativity, for surprising looks and bold statements. But while fun and cleverness about in the costume and home decoration arenas, it seems like candy always gets left behind. Every year, it's the same old thing: Reese's cups and lollipops, Butterfingers and Tootsie Rolls, and that one house where they pass out candy corn. This year, while you're planning a your exciting costume, why not give your candy bowl a facelift, too? Asian grocery stores -- my favorite go-to source for creative sodas and innovative convenience foods -- are also a treasure-trove of strange and wonderful candies the kids in your neighborhood won't be seeing at every other house. As an added plus, most Asian candies don't contain high-fructose corn syrup, partially-hydrogenated oils, nor many of the other fake-food ingredients that plague American candy. Admittedly, they're a bit more expensive, but if there's one holiday that practically screams for a candy splurge, it's Halloween. Here are a few great Asian candies that were taste-tested and reviewed by members of the DailyFinance staff:

Hot Beverage Stocks To Watch Right Now: Pluristem Therapeutics Inc.(PSTI)

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc., a bio-therapeutic company, engages in the research, development, and commercialization of standardized cell therapy products for the treatment of life threatening diseases. The company?s products are derived from human placenta, a non-controversial, non-embryonic, adult cell source. Its Placental adherent stromal cells are grown in the company's proprietary PluriX three-dimensional process that allows cells to grow in a natural environment. The company provides PLX-PAD that has completed Phase I clinical trials for people suffering from peripheral artery disease. It also offers various product candidates for diabetic foot ulcers, adjuvant hip replacement surgery, athletic injuries, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, neuropathic pain, ischemic stroke, adjuvant for UCB transplantation, and radiation exposure. The company was formerly known as Pluristem Life Systems Inc. and changed its name to Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. in November 2007. Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Haifa, Israel.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  Traders may not want to get married for the long haul to any of them, but for speculators looking for a quick, profitable hit, Arca Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:ABIO), Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:PSTI), and Bacterin International Holdings Inc. (NYSEMKT:BONE) may be better-than-average bets. Here's why.

• [By John Udovich]

  Stem cell stocks have not exactly been the best performers lately in part because the controversy over their use has died down over the years while major breakthroughs have been few or far between, but the industry along with small cap stem cell stocks Pluristem Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: PSTI), BioTime, Inc (NYSEMKT: BTX) and BioRestorative Therapies (OTCBB: BRTX) are still quietly producing their share of news or minor breakthroughs worth taking note of. Just consider the following stem cell news or news from small cap players in the sector:

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: Proofpoint Inc (PFPT)

Proofpoint, Inc. (Proofpoint), incorporated in 2002, is a security-as-a-service vendor that delivers data protection solutions, which helps medium- and large-sized organizations worldwide. Proofpoint�� security-as-a-service platform consists of an integrated suite of on-demand data protection solutions, including threat protection, regulatory compliance, archiving and governance, and secures communication. It provides a multi-tiered security-as-a-service platform consisting of solutions, platform technologies and infrastructure. The Company�� security-as-a-service platform includes four solutions bundled for the convenience of its customers: Proofpoint Enterprise Protection, Proofpoint Enterprise Privacy, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive and Proofpoint Enterprise Governance. Its platform services consist of content inspection, reputation, encryption and key management, notification and workflow, and analytics and search. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired NextPage, Inc. In September 2013, Proofpoint Inc completed its acquisition of Armorize Technologies Inc. In October 2013, the Company acquired Silicon Valley based Sendmail, Inc.

The Company�� solutions are used by approximately 2,400 customers worldwide, including 26 of the Fortune 100, protecting tens of millions of end-users. It markets and sells its solutions worldwide both directly through the sales teams and indirectly through a hybrid model. It also distributes its solutions through International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), Microsoft Corporation and VMware, Inc.

Proofpoint Enterprise Protection

Proofpoint Enterprise Protection is the Company�� communications and collaboration security suite designed to protect customers' mission-critical messaging infrastructure from outside threats including spam, phishing, unpredictable e-mail volumes, malware and other forms of objectionable or dangerous content before they reach the enterprise. Key capabilities within proofpoint en! terprise protection include threat detection, virus protection, zero-hour threat detection and smart search.

Proofpoint Enterprise Privacy

The Company�� data loss prevention, encryption and compliance solution defends against leaks of confidential information, and helps ensure compliance with common United States, international and industry-specific data protection regulations, including HIPAA, GLBA, PIPEDA and PCI-DSS. Key capabilities within Proofpoint Enterprise Privacy include Advanced data loss prevention, Flexible remediation and supervision, Policy-based encryption and Secure file transfer.

Proofpoint Enterprise Archive

Proofpoint Enterprise Archive is designed to ensure accurate enforcement of data governance, data retention and supervision policies and mandates; cost effective litigation support through discovery, and active legal hold management. Proofpoint Enterprise Archive can store, govern and discover a range of data, including e-mail, instant message conversations, social media interactions, and other files throughout the enterprise. The key capabilities within Proofpoint Enterprise Archive include Secure cloud storage, Search performance, Flexible policy enforcement, Active legal-hold management and End-user supervision.

Proofpoint Enterprise Governance

Proofpoint Enterprise Governance provides organizations the ability to track, classify, monitor, and apply governance policies to unstructured information across the enterprise. The key capabilities within Proofpoint Enterprise Governance include Document Tracking-Digital Thread, Cloud-based Search and Analytics, and Flexible policy enforcement.

The Company competes with Cisco Systems, Inc., EMC Corporation, Google Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, Intel and Microsoft.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  One company in particular I'd suggest putting back on the sales rack is Proofpoint (NASDAQ: PFPT  ) , a threat and regulatory security-as-a-service provider. The profit potential is certainly there. Proofpoint's SaaS model is built around getting the client hooked on its products and making it inconvenient and cost-inefficient for them to switch to a competitor. In other words, it's setting up its own razor-and-blades model that should fuel recurring revenue for years to come.

• [By John Kell]

  Security services provider Proofpoint Inc.(PFPT) shares popped after the company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter results and issued optimistic revenue guidance. Shares jumped 10% to $40.24 premarket.

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: Acacia Research Corporation(ACTG)

Acacia Research Corporation, through its subsidiaries, acquires, develops, licenses, and enforces patented technologies in the United States. It assists patent owners with the prosecution and development of their patent portfolios; protection of their patented inventions from unauthorized use; generation of licensing revenue from users of their patented technologies; and enforcement against unauthorized users of their patented technologies. The company owns or controls the rights to approximately 200 patent portfolios, which include the United State?s patents and foreign counterparts covering technologies used in various industries. Acacia Research Corporation was founded in 1992 and is based in Newport Beach, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Well, it would be inaccurate to see patent-defense companies like Vringo, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNG), InterDigital, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDCC), and Acacia Research Corp. (NASDAQ:ACTG) have been forced into going out of business. But, it wouldn't be inaccurate to say some of these so-called patent trolls are now potentially facing a much bigger legal headwind. Investors of companies like IDCC, ACTG, and VRNG may want to reassess the upside of their holdings, now that new laws regarding patent litigation have all but been put into place.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  What: Shares of intellectual property owner Acacia Research (NASDAQ: ACTG  ) fell 26% today after the company released earnings.

  So what: Revenue fell 22% to $76.9 million and net income dropped 90% to $5.1 million, or $0.11 per share. On an adjusted basis, earnings per share were $0.47, which was actually $0.05 ahead of estimates. �

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: TCW Strategic Income Fund Inc (TSI)

TCW Strategic Income Fund, Inc. (the Fund), formerly TCW Convertible Securities Fund, Inc., incorporated on January 13, 1987, is a diversified closed-end investment management company. The Fund's investment objective is to seek a total return consisting of current income and capital appreciation by investing in convertible securities, marketable equity securities, investment-grade debt securities, high-yield debt securities, options, and securities issued or guaranteed by the United States Government, its agencies and instrumentalities (U.S. Government Securities). The Fund also invests in repurchase agreements, mortgage-related securities, asset-backed securities, money market securities and other securities.

The Fund may invest in repurchase agreements secured by U.S. Government Securities. The Fund invests in sectors, such as financial services, aerospace and defense, airlines, automobiles, banking, commercial services, electric utilities, insurance, media, utilities, biotechnology and chemicals. The Fund�� investment advisor is TCW Investment Management Company.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividends4Life]

  According to a Gabelli Funds report, managed distribution policies offer several advantages, including:1. Lower difference between the fund�� market price and its NAV per share.2. Provides support during periods when the stock market is in a decline.3. Provides a measurable performance target for the investment adviser.Below are several high-yield funds from CEFA that have a managed distribution policy (yields as of December 16):Aberdeen Australia Eqty (IAF)- Distribution Yield: 10.4%- Income Yield: 3.46%Bexil Advisers LLC� (DNI)- Distribution Yield: 11.1%- Income Yield: 3.56%BlackRock En Capital&Inc (CII)- Distribution Yield: 8.78%- Income Yield: 2.34%Cornerstone Strat Value (CLM)- Distribution Yield: 18.77%- Income Yield: 1.83%Cornerstone Total Return (CRF)- Distribution Yield: 19.10%- Income Yield: 0.85%Delaware Inv Div & Inc (DDF)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 5.26%Gabelli Equity Trust (GAB)- Distribution Yield: 7.58%- Income Yield: 1.54%Gabelli Utility Trust (GUT)- Distribution Yield: 9.45%- Income Yield: 2.84%MFS Special Value Trust (MFV)- Distribution Yield: 9.60%- Income Yield: 5.73%Nuveen Tx-Adv TR Strat (JTA)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 3.12%TCW Strategic Income (TSI)- Distribution Yield: 10.54%- Income Yield: 7.88%Zweig Total Return (ZTR)- Distribution Yield: 7.27%- Income Yield: 1.95%As noted in the Gabelli report, a managed distribution policy may create confusion regarding the true current yield since the reported yield includes the return of capital portion. You can see the disparity above between the income yield and the distribution (reported) yield.If you are looking for a sustainable and growing dividend, you may want to consider some blue-chip dividend stocks such as these with a Free Cash Flow Payout less than 50%, 50+ years of consecutive dividend increases and a 2%+ yield:3M Co. (MMM) is a diversified global company provides enhanced product functionality in electronics, health care, industrial, consumer

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: Blackbaud Inc.(BLKB)

Blackbaud, Inc. provides software and related services for nonprofit organizations. The company offers The Raiser?s Edge, a software application to manage constituent relationship management (CRM) and fundraising activity; Blackbaud CRM, a Web-based CRM solution that addresses the needs of mid-size, large, and federated chapter based nonprofit organizations; eTapestry, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) donor management and fundraising solution for smaller nonprofits; Blackbaud NetCommunity, an Internet marketing and communications tool to build interactive Websites and manage email marketing campaigns; Sphere eMarketing, a SaaS that provides applications to manage e-marketing, communications, programs, services, and online fundraising; Everyday Hero, an event-based online fundraising solution; and BlackbaudNow for developing an online presence and accepting online donations. It also provides The Financial Edge, an accounting application; The Education Edge, a student informa tion management system; Blackbaud?s Student Information System, which links student information across various campus offices, as well as organizes the admissions and registrar?s processes; and Blackbaud for Small Schools, a SaaS solution that helps schools with their registration process, as well as gives parents, students, and faculty an online access to school information. In addition, the company offers The Patron Edge, a ticketing management solution; Blackbaud Direct Marketing that helps in managing direct marketing campaigns with various media and channels; Sphere Friends Asking Friends software product to launch and manage online event fundraising Websites; and Altru, a SaaS solution that helps general admissions arts and cultural organizations in their operation. Further, it provides consulting and education, analytics, maintenance, and payment processing services. Blackbaud, Inc. was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By MONEYMORNING.COM]

  Now we like Blackbaud Inc. (NasdaqGS: BLKB).

  Charleston, S.C.-based Blackbaud focuses on such nonprofits as research foundations and universities. The company has 29,000 clients who use its software to manage fundraising, accounting, and online marketing and payment services.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Blackbaud (Nasdaq: BLKB  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on May 1. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

  The 10-second takeaway
  Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Blackbaud's revenues will expand 20.7% and EPS will expand 11.8%.

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: Intuit Inc.(INTU)

Intuit Inc. provides business and financial management solutions for small and medium-sized businesses, consumers, accounting professionals, and financial institutions primarily in the United States, Canada, India, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. The company offers QuickBooks financial and business management software and services, technical support, financial supplies, and Web site design and hosting services for small and medium-sized businesses; and payroll products and services, as well as merchant services comprising credit and debit card processing, electronic check conversion, and automated clearing house services for small businesses. It also provides TurboTax income tax preparation products and services for consumers and small business owners; Lacerte and ProSeries professional tax products and services; and QuickBooks Premier Accountant Edition and the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program for accounting professionals. In addition, the company offers outsourced online financial management solutions for banks and credit unions; Quicken personal finance products and services; Mint.com online personal finance services; and Intuit Health online patient-to-provider communication solutions. It sells its products and services through various sales and distribution channels, including Websites, promotions, retail channels, and call centers, as well as through alliance partners, principally consisting of banks, credit unions, and securities and investment firms. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Thursday

  Earnings Expected From: Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU), Gap (NYSE: GPS), Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR), Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL), Gamestop (NYSE: GME) Economic Releases Expected:  U.S. existing home sales, eurozone consumer confidence, U.S. manufacturing PMI, British retail sales, eurozone manufacturing PMI, eurozone services PMI, German manufacturing PMI, German services PMI, French manufacturing PMI, French services PMI

  Friday

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  David Ryder/Getty ImagesAmazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos NEW YORK -- Amazon.com (AMZN) is taking direct aim at mobile payment systems such as Square by introducing the Amazon Local Register, a credit-card processing device and mobile app designed to help small business owners accept payments through their smartphones and tablets. The move places the largest U.S. e-commerce retailer in competition with Square and other established mobile payment processing systems such as eBay's (EBAY) PayPal Here and Intuit's (INTU) GoPayment. Amazon's technology includes a card reader that attaches to a smartphone, Kindle or tablet. The reader processes credit or debit card payments via a secure Amazon network, the same one that processes Amazon.com purchases. The service is designed to serve on-the-go small business owners who might otherwise only accept cash or checks, including massage therapists, food truck operators and artists who sell their work at outdoor fairs. Small businesses can start using Local Register by creating an account at http://localregister.amazon.com. Businesses must buy Amazon's card reader for $10, and download the free mobile app from the Amazon app store, the Apple app store or Google (GOOG) Play. The app works on most smartphones and tablets, including the Kindle Fire. Similar to Amazon's strategy in many of its businesses, the company aims to compete on price in the mobile payment arena. For customers who sign up for the service by Oct. 31, Amazon will take as its fee 1.75 percent of each payment processed, or each "swipe" of the card, a special rate that will last until Jan. 1, 2016. For people who sign up after Oct. 31, Amazon will take a service fee of 2.5 percent of each payment processed. The first $10 in transaction fees will be credited back to the customer, essentially paying for the card reader. That's below most of its competitors' rates. Square takes a fee of 2.75 percent of each transaction. PayPal Here takes 2.7 percent of each tra

• [By Michael Lewis]

  Sea change
  As with many industries, tax prep is witnessing a period of technological disruption in the form of Web-based software. Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU  ) is the leader in the space with its Turbo Tax product. Lesser-known Blucora (NASDAQ: BCOR  ) has its hand in the game as well with TaxACT. The latter is a small but healthy business. TaxACT maintains strong margins and grows at roughly 8% to 10% annually. Currently, the company maintains around 12% of online tax-prep market share.

• [By Maria Armental and Tess Stynes var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); ]

  Intuit Inc.'s(INTU) fiscal third-quarter profit rose 20% as the tax software company recorded higher revenues, bolstered by a late start to tax season. However its fiscal year outlook was slightly below expectations. Shares fell 4.7% to $73.20 premarket.

Top 10 Asian Stocks To Buy For 2014: AVEO Pharmaceuticals Inc.(AVEO)

AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery and development of cancer therapeutics. The company?s lead product candidate, Tivozanib (AV-951), is a novel, highly potent and selective oral inhibitor of the vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, receptors 1, 2, and 3. It is also leading the clinical development of AV-299, which includes conducting multiple Phase I clinical trials and preparing for the conduct of multiple Phase II clinical trials. The company?s product candidate in preclinical development is AV-203, a potent ErbB3 antibody that has demonstrated efficacy in vivo. It has strategic partnerships with OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck, and Biogen Idec, Inc. AVEO Pharmaceuticals was formerly known as GenPath Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and changed its name to AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in March 2005. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Despite this seemingly endless parade of advanced RCC treatments, there have also been some notable failures -- perhaps none more fresh than AVEO Pharmaceuticals' (NASDAQ: AVEO  ) implosion this past week. AVEO's lead drug, Tivozanib, provided a statistically significant median PFS advantage over Nexavar in late-stage trials, but it failed to produce a median overall survival gain compared to Nexavar. That confusing stat prompted the FDA's panel to vote 13-1 against recommending Tivozanib for approval. While not dead, it's going to take at least another trial it seems to justify Tivozanib's benefits.

• [By Sean Williams]

  What: Shares of AVEO Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AVEO  ) , a cancer therapeutics company, collapsed as much as 27% following the release of briefing documents today in anticipation of AVEO's meeting with the Food and Drug Administration panel on Thursday.

• [By Chris Rees]

  We have previously published two articles about Aveo Pharmaceuticals (AVEO) and its kidney cancer drug Tivozanib. This article will make more sense if you read those articles first. You can find the first one here and the second one here. We have been working on the Aveo story for over a year, and were convinced the FDA would interpret the data results the same way we did and draw the same conclusions. But it did not. We have no problem admitting we were shocked and stunned at the result -- we still are.